Were they really THAT good ??
The answer is yes
Firstly a Massive start to this success was the Attitude Ben Kennedy added to Manly (2004-05) ??....it was contagous and the the Attitude and determination to every play was where the success was built from, with the entire squad feeding off his winning attitude like hungry piranhas..
Sure there was my favourite in Snake carving out freakish plays, a young DCE adding zest around the ruck to follow on from a great signing in Matty Orford at halfback, Matai cutting players in half and dashing runs.....cult hero's like Rose and Wolf bringing the crowd into it and the pure class of Lyons with that extra time reserved for the games most gifted....then there was these unsung hero's like Bryant, Mauro, Hall, Galavao and Rodney who worked like Trojans led by the glue of this operation in Matty Ballin.
Kingy and Kite got it done when it counted.
A skillful young Will Hopoate and the most under rated winger in history in GF hat trick legend Robertson.
The last 2 players I mention deserve special praise because in all honesty, I did not realize just how much inspiration they had on this side.
Watmough and Foran....yes plenty of anger on things since this period, but they deserve respect for what they done ON the field during this dominant time.
Foran is simply a Footballer gifted with guts and energy, the ultimate competitor who often rushed up giving away 30kg to put on massive hits to lift the team and basically destroy the opposition momentum. He ran he ball well and always played at the line, sacrificing his body for his team and was always first to pat a mate on the back or give them a rev if they didn't maintain his high level effort in every play.
Watmough was an absolute machine, combining quality with quantity, tackling hard ALL day and like a pinball bouncing out of tackles and always winning the quick play the ball.
This dominant side could easily have won another 2 - 3 premierships with 2013 a rort and off field media crap derailing other campaigns.
A big part of the pain we feel as supporters today, is just how far we have fallen from grace in comparison to this almighty dominant period....hopefully 2019 is the start of a fightback for a new era.
The answer is yes
Firstly a Massive start to this success was the Attitude Ben Kennedy added to Manly (2004-05) ??....it was contagous and the the Attitude and determination to every play was where the success was built from, with the entire squad feeding off his winning attitude like hungry piranhas..
Sure there was my favourite in Snake carving out freakish plays, a young DCE adding zest around the ruck to follow on from a great signing in Matty Orford at halfback, Matai cutting players in half and dashing runs.....cult hero's like Rose and Wolf bringing the crowd into it and the pure class of Lyons with that extra time reserved for the games most gifted....then there was these unsung hero's like Bryant, Mauro, Hall, Galavao and Rodney who worked like Trojans led by the glue of this operation in Matty Ballin.
Kingy and Kite got it done when it counted.
A skillful young Will Hopoate and the most under rated winger in history in GF hat trick legend Robertson.
The last 2 players I mention deserve special praise because in all honesty, I did not realize just how much inspiration they had on this side.
Watmough and Foran....yes plenty of anger on things since this period, but they deserve respect for what they done ON the field during this dominant time.
Foran is simply a Footballer gifted with guts and energy, the ultimate competitor who often rushed up giving away 30kg to put on massive hits to lift the team and basically destroy the opposition momentum. He ran he ball well and always played at the line, sacrificing his body for his team and was always first to pat a mate on the back or give them a rev if they didn't maintain his high level effort in every play.
Watmough was an absolute machine, combining quality with quantity, tackling hard ALL day and like a pinball bouncing out of tackles and always winning the quick play the ball.
This dominant side could easily have won another 2 - 3 premierships with 2013 a rort and off field media crap derailing other campaigns.
A big part of the pain we feel as supporters today, is just how far we have fallen from grace in comparison to this almighty dominant period....hopefully 2019 is the start of a fightback for a new era.
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